Ignorance is Bliss
by Galadraen
Summary: Nori knows everything going on between his baby brother and Dwalin, while Dori is left in the dark (or as much in the dark as Nori will allow!) Dwalin/Ori Nori's POV


**A/N**: _Sorry, ridiculously hot dwarves have taken over my life. Excuse any errors, this isn't is unbeta-ed so any mistakes are purely my own._

**Disclaimer**:_ I don't own the Hobbit, LoTR, or anything else written by Tolkien. I do however own far too much (NOT ENOUGH) fandom merchandise._

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Nori tried to stifle his laughter as he watched his little brother rise from his seat by the fire and saunter over to Dwalin, who was perched on a rock near the edge of the river. The old warrior paused sharpening the blade of one of his axes when the little scribe took a seat next to him. His little brother smiled shyly up at the older dwarf, fiddling with his knitted gloves.

"There he goes again."

"And what do you mean by that?" his older brother replied, irritation flaring up in his voice. Dori poured the steaming hot water he had boiled into a large basin already filled with the dishes from their breakfast. "You could help me with these, you know."

"Our little lover boy brother has gone off to flirt with Dwalin again," Nori nodded in the direction of the pair whispering to one another on the rock and unsheathed his dagger to pick at the dirt underneath his nails, ignoring the request. "He's got the maddest crush on him."

"Oh nonsense!" Dori pushed up his sleeves and was elbow deep in the hot water, scouring the dishes with a rough sponge. Nori rolled his eyes and continued to pick at his nails with the blade. "Ori's an inquisitive lad and Dwalin is a seasoned warrior. He has plenty of tales to tell of his valour fighting alongside Thorin and his brother at the battle of Azanulbizar, long before he was born. It's not everyday you get to meet such fabled warriors. As a scribe, he takes particular interest in that sort of thing. Even so, I don't think Master Dwalin is even his _type_, should he even have one. Far too rough and brutish for our little scholar. They don't have a thing in common. They don't!"

"Uh huh..." Nori watched the pair on the rock as they chatted animatedly with one another and Dori continued to ramble on about how they weren't a fit match. Ori was showing Dwalin something he had in one of his notebooks and the older dwarf laughed wholeheartedly. He gave his little brother such a genuine look of affection that it made Nori's own heart ache.

Once, Nori had shared his eldest brother's views on the old warrior. When he first began to court Ori, he had been enraged by the prospect and watched them diligently. He was half tempted to cut off Dwalin's hands in the night when he saw him help the youngster into his saddle one afternoon. Though over the course of their journey, his irritation had faded until he was content with his brother's decision to trust the older dwarf with his heart. He'd seen the gentle touches and looks Dwalin gave his brother and his shy returned smiles, though they hadn't seen him. That was enough for Nori. If his little brother was happy with that old geezer, who was he to tell him he was wrong for it?

Dori however, was more than perturbed by the situation, though he didn't show it so openly. In fact, he didn't seem to show his irritation outwardly at all. Instead, he ignored it as if it wasn't happening. Every time Dwalin would reach out to caress one of his little brother's braids or gently stroke his hand, Dori would look away and immediately occupy himself with some meaningless task. Much to his dismay and Nori's entertainment, the middle brother did everything he could to remind Dori of the affections their little brother bore for Dwalin.

"Oh, that's not all that he is interested in learning I'm sure..." Nori smirked and as his older brother cringed, scrubbing the bowl he was holding with even more fervour.

"No, you're right about that," Dori was either completely oblivious to his innuendo or has chosen to ignore him again. "He's been asking on about all those piercings and tattoos he has too! If he's got it in his head that he wants to get one, he has another thing coming to him! No little brother of mine will go traipsing about with a ring in his nose!"

"Wouldn't say that it's the only thing he's got coming to him. I would bet my share of the gold in Erebor that he's keen on showing out little brother _all_ of those piercings and tattoos he's got."

"Goodness, Nori will you just drop it!" Dori huffed, plunging his arms into the water so violently, it sloshed over the edges of the basin as he snatched up a plate. "The last thing I want to think about is that dwarf courting my _baby_ brother! And you always have to go on and assume the worst of it. Always thinking you're so clever! You tell me these things just to get me riled up when you're bored. You've done it since you were a lad! Ori's just curious is all. Dwalin's an old warrior and he has a lot of experience in the field. I'm sure Ori is just-"

"Oh, he's got loads of experience if the tales are true. And not just in the battlefield," interrupted Nori and his elder brother went silent, his cheeks growing red.

Dwalin leaned in to whisper something in Ori's ear, a hand sneaking around the little dwarf's waist. The young scribe giggled and flushed, growing redder as the dwarf continued to whisper against his neck. Bolder still, the older dwarf pressed a light kiss behind his ear and the hand on his waist crept down to give his arse a firm squeeze. Ori let out a squeak and bolted upright in surprise. Dwalin laughed heartily as the younger dwarf pouted. Ori took this opportunity to attack and pounced on him, knocking Dwalin backwards off the rock. They landed in a heap on the ground, Ori on top and laughing even harder than the old warrior.

"Oi, you can't tell me you didn't see that?" Nori pointed his knife in their direction, mouth open in surprise, and his eyes glancing back and forth between his brothers.

"Nothing at all! You're looking far too into this situation."

Dori's eyes never lifted from the basin. He hadn't even been looking their way and seemed to be occupying himself with scouring out the bowls and cups with focused precision.

"Whatever helps ya sleep at night," judging by his deeply furrowed brows, he was really trying his elder brother's patience with this game. Perhaps it was time for him to take his leave. His lips curled into a mischievous grin. "I know they won't be doing much of that, if you know what I mean."

"Nori!" his brother shrieked, reeling on him in anger.

But Nori had already abandoned his seat and was darting off across camp, rushing away to escape his older brother's wrath and the soaking wet sponge he had flung at him.

_Fin._

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**A/N:**_ Hope you enjoyed this! Please be sure to review and check out my profile if you'd like to follow me on Tumlbr or AO3. _

**_-Galadraen_**


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